1998 Gen 2.5 Montero w/Winter Package - Preparing for Adventure

[Martin_X]

Back in September I acquired a 1998 Montero with the winter package and around 150,000 miles. The car had spent its life in the Lancaster/Palmdale area and had zero rust, if quite a bit of red dust and sand in every orifice. I paid around $1,500 cash, thinking any money I put into it would still be less than the 3rd Gen 4Runner I had been hunting with a rear locker. After purchase I did a few fixes to get it rolling: welded a cracked flange to the passenger exhaust manifold to fix an exhaust leak, replaced the alternator, and replaced all of the pulleys and accessory belts.

It's had a few persistent but slow leaks my mechanic said are normal, and the solution at the moment is just to run a really thick oil. As a result I'm running 20w-50 which seems to be holding things together for the moment. Water pump appears shiny so I'm assuming the timing belt was done relatively recently.

My short term goals are to get it ready for a trip to the Grand Canyon and southern Utah in June.

Here's how I'm mapping out my priorities:

Heating/Cooling

• Radiator Flush
• New hoses
• Replace heater core (pretty sure it's leaking onto the driver foot well, I have the replacement part)
• AC recharge (compressor turns on but no cold air)

Engine/Fuel

• Replace fuel filter
• New spark plugs/wires, spark plug gaskets, valve cover gaskets (I keep getting a P0301 engine code)

Drivetrain/Transmission

• Check dif. lock/compressor (indicator light doesn't switch on)
• Figure out how to get transfer case into 4hiLoc/4Lo (lever won't move from 4hi)
• Transmission fluid change & diagnose (hesitant shifting, occasional stutter of power)

Interior

• Passenger window regulator/motor assembly
• Airbag recall

Exterior

• Replace passenger fog light bulb (can't figure out how to access this)

I was planning on taking it to a shop to get most of this done, at least the transmission/differential work and the radiator/ac/heater core stuff. I live in a condo and don't feel comfortable dealing with the various fluids under the watchful eyes of my neighbors. I will attempt the plugs/wires and gaskets myself.

Which of these items would you prioritize?
Anything I'm missing?
Any projects you would avoid?
Is it realistic to get this thing ship-shape in 6 weeks? (I have a job)

It's been a blast to drive around some of the urban-offroad trails available in LA, and I'd love to be able to take this rig out for bigger adventures.

 

[Salonika]

Heater core.......you’ll pay dearly for that, it’s a big job. If you have no choice, you have no choice. I would get a few quotes. Get a copy of the FSM and scope out the job for yourself, and it might not be a bad idea to have the procedure for a shop to use. $1500 for no rust sounds amazing to me. Mine is pretty rusty.....

 

[Martin_X]

Heater core.......you’ll pay dearly for that, it’s a big job. If you have no choice, you have no choice. I would get a few quotes. Get a copy of the FSM and scope out the job for yourself, and it might not be a bad idea to have the procedure for a shop to use. $1500 for no rust sounds amazing to me. Mine is pretty rusty.....

Thanks for the reply... I have been planning to do it myself but might get a shop to do the bypass for me as a short-term fix. Hopefully it doesn't get too cold in the desert in June...

 

[PacS14]

Congrats on the find! Looks pretty clean exterior wise. I remember there was a guy in Cali who said he always used a shop that worked on many Mitsubishis and that the owner also had a Montero or something like that, so might be worth searching for that. If you are living in a condo, have no garage, no tools and no time to tackle most of those jobs, but have the money to have a repair shop do it, I wouldn't think too much about it.

The Montero as it is, with the factory rear locker will get you to most places and through a lot of low to mid level trails, so getting it up to date with maintenance will do most of what most people need, then after a few trips you be the judge on what modifications if any you need for the next adventure. Myself I've done the maintenance and 33" tires, so far I've slept in a few times and I find the bed you can make with the third row seat plenty comfortable with a blanket underneath and one to cover myself (I'm in the military, and I've had worse, I've also slept in tents with just a sleeping bag on the floor, etc).

And no leaks are normal... ****** ? you need a new mechanic lol on the heater it always sounds like a good idea to bypass it "during the summer" then you get to winter and realize you have no heat, but if you have to do it to keep the Montero going, do it.

Congrats again! Keep us updated on your progress!

 

[plh]

If you have no record of a timing belt, tensioner, crank bolt & water pump replacement, do it now. Recommended interval is 60K miles. Shiny means nothing. For me it would be absolute top of the list. But of course $1500 is basically throw away money and paying someone to do a timing belt refresh will double your investment cost. So weigh the pros and cons of what you are willing to risk... and have good towing insurance.

 

[Martin_X]

Congrats on the find! Looks pretty clean exterior wise. I remember there was a guy in Cali who said he always used a shop that worked on many Mitsubishis and that the owner also had a Montero or something like that, so might be worth searching for that. If you are living in a condo, have no garage, no tools and no time to tackle most of those jobs, but have the money to have a repair shop do it, I wouldn't think too much about it.

The Montero as it is, with the factory rear locker will get you to most places and through a lot of low to mid level trails, so getting it up to date with maintenance will do most of what most people need, then after a few trips you be the judge on what modifications if any you need for the next adventure. Myself I've done the maintenance and 33" tires, so far I've slept in a few times and I find the bed you can make with the third row seat plenty comfortable with a blanket underneath and one to cover myself (I'm in the military, and I've had worse, I've also slept in tents with just a sleeping bag on the floor, etc).

And no leaks are normal... ****** ? you need a new mechanic lol on the heater it always sounds like a good idea to bypass it "during the summer" then you get to winter and realize you have no heat, but if you have to do it to keep the Montero going, do it.

Congrats again! Keep us updated on your progress!

Thanks for the reply. When I first got the truck I took it to Miyaki motorsports in El Monte. The owner is a current 3rd gen owner and former gen 2.5 owner. He helped me diagnose a couple of early problems for free and has encouraged me to work on the truck myself. I am trying to prioritize projects so bypassing the heater core is a way of buying time while I attempt to address potentially bigger issues like plugs, valve cover gasket, transmission, and possibly timing belt.

 

[Martin_X]

If you have no record of a timing belt, tensioner, crank bolt & water pump replacement, do it now. Recommended interval is 60K miles. Shiny means nothing. For me it would be absolute top of the list. But of course $1500 is basically throw away money and paying someone to do a timing belt refresh will double your investment cost. So weigh the pros and cons of what you are willing to risk... and have good towing insurance.

Thanks for the reply. I am trying to do what's best for the truck and prioritize the big projects as I see it. The most noticeable issues to me are leaks on the valve cover, slow shifts and slipping transmission, and a cylinder 1 misfire code. The way the used car market is currently I don't mind spending more than I paid for the truck, even up to $5000 or so all in I doubt I could find a similarly capable vehicle for less than $10,000 at the moment, at least not in Southern California. In terms of difficulty, how would you rank the timing belt job vs valve cover gaskets/plugs? I would like to attempt one of these big jobs myself.

 

[Salonika]

The FSM is one of the best I’ve ever used.....very detailed and rarely lacking information to complete a job for the first time. You do need basic / intermediate skills to follow it though. You need a copy. It will help you to evaluate how big these jobs are.

 

[Martin_X]

The FSM is one of the best I’ve ever used.....very detailed and rarely lacking information to complete a job for the first time. You do need basic / intermediate skills to follow it though. You need a copy. It will help you to evaluate how big these jobs are.

I actually have the FSM and have used it for a few projects already, accessory belts/pullies, alternator and exhaust header. It's great!

 

[plh]

Thanks for the reply. I am trying to do what's best for the truck and prioritize the big projects as I see it. The most noticeable issues to me are leaks on the valve cover, slow shifts and slipping transmission, and a cylinder 1 misfire code. The way the used car market is currently I don't mind spending more than I paid for the truck, even up to $5000 or so all in I doubt I could find a similarly capable vehicle for less than $10,000 at the moment, at least not in Southern California. In terms of difficulty, how would you rank the timing belt job vs valve cover gaskets/plugs? I would like to attempt one of these big jobs myself.

Book rate is around 9 hours for water pump & timing belt, so compare your skills to a pro for time estimate. I have not looked up valve cover & plugs R&R time, probably a bit less than the belt. Neither are super difficult and the FSM has the instructions documented well.

 

[B-Line Performance]

Good checkoff list. Might as well check on your brake pads and brake lines.

 

[SoCalMonty]

Man, it's nice to see people are still selling old used cars at fair prices. I overpaid dearly for my '98 ($5k with 228k miles!!!!!!!).

One suggestion might be to take it to a shop you trust, and get a "pre purchase" type of inspection. They'll check all the basic systems and let you know what the truck needs. Good luck!